


Take my whole life too

by Pickl3lily



Series: Killerwave 2016 [5]
Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV), The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Blink and you'll miss it reference to ColdFlash, Bullying, Charlie Snow - Freeform, Child Death, KillerWave Week 2016, Multi, Potential trigger warning, Time Travel, briefly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-09
Updated: 2016-06-09
Packaged: 2018-07-14 00:49:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7145309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pickl3lily/pseuds/Pickl3lily
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Day 5 of KillerWave week: Time travel.</p><p>1988. 1998. 2008. 2018. Why does the Waverider keep crashing through time, ten years apart but in Central City every time?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Take my whole life too

  1. They crashed in 1988, Central City and this was really getting annoying. “Seriously Rip?” Kendra’s voice was indignant, which was only partly due to the annoyance of having just crash landed _again_ , but mostly because she had just vomited all over her new shoes. “I thought you’d been piloting the Waverider for like, 15 years, how can you still be crashing it? I thought we were needing to hide out from the time hunters – how can we do that if we’re just crashing our way through the time stream?” Rip looked vexed at Kendra’s accusations, at which point a surprisingly soft snuffle emerged from one of the chairs. Everybody was shocked to see Mick Rory sleeping soundly with his head smushed awkwardly against his seat’s brace.



“Yes, well. Technically, we didn’t actually crash – an anomaly in the time stream pulled us here. The anomaly is to be located, more or less, right outside of the Waverider’s door. So, I shall leave you to wake Mister Rory, and then we shall investigate.” Instantly, a hushed argument broke out as to who would be the unfortunate soul to wake the arsonist. Five minutes later, everyone was gathered in the cargo bay, ready to disembark. Ray was moping beside Kendra, an ice pack pressed to his bloody nose. “It’s not fair! I didn’t even wake him up – Jax did!” Kendra patted his shoulder absently, lack of sympathy evident when she said “Well honey, it really is your own fault. Jax knew to duck – you should’ve too.”

 

The anomaly, as it turned out, was the birth of twins – a boy and a girl. There was nothing particularly noticeable about the experience, no fight to be had or infiltration to be had. The woman had given birth alone to the babies, one boy and one girl before falling asleep with her babies in her arms; Kendra hadn’t been able to stop herself from crying when they realised that the baby boy was blue, silent and still – the umbilical cord wrapped around his tiny neck. The team didn’t understand the significance of this tragic event or why it had pulled them from the time stream, but they made sure the woman made it to the hospital anyway, Ray and Jax taking the woman and children to be checked in, and looking seriously dazed when they emerged from the hospital to meet their team mates.

“You’re not going to believe who that was.” Jax spoke lowly as they made their way back to the ship, Ray trundling behind, still unable to formulate words. Stein, of course, was the one to verbally inquire, “Who was it? I take it we know their 2016 counterpart?”. Jax nodded dumbly as they made it to the Waverider, stopping where he was and turning to face the team. “That woman was Caroline Snow – and that baby was Caitlin.”

 

The shock of Caitlin Snow’s traumatic birth was soon pushed to the back of their minds with Gideon informing them that there was clear indication of the hunters following their signal to 1988 – which meant it was time to move. Rip insisting emphatically that he knew just where to hide. Unfortunately, the time stream had other plans, again regurgitating the ship at a random point in time. They were still in Central, but now it was 1998 and it quickly became apparent that they had crashed beside a park where a group of ten year old boys were pushing a small girl into the ground. She screamed and trembled every time one of the boys would push her back into the dirt, scornful taunts sneered into her face. “Hey!” Of everyone on the crew, nobody expected Mick Rory to be the one hurtling down the ramp of the Waverider, clearly headed straight for the kids in the park. The kids who took one look at the seriously pissed off man coming their way and scarpered, leaving the little girl sobbing in the dirt. “Hey princess. You okay?”

The rest of the team had followed Mick, all but Snart having been afraid of what he might have done – not yet realising that the only people safe from Mick when he really got going, were kids. They watched shocked as Mick had crouched level with the girl and brushed her muddy hair from her face, lowering his voice to make it seem a little less rough and frightening. The girl sniffed loudly, angling her head down so that she could wipe her face against her shoulder. “I’m okay. We were just playing.” Her voice was timid, the words rehearsed and it was obvious that this was not the first time that she had been a victim to such harsh bullying.

“No. It’s not okay and that’s not a game! I knew kids like that when I was little – used to play ‘games’ with me too. They locked me in a meat chiller an’ I almost died ‘cause of it.” Mick was speaking lowly but passionately, trying to keep his team from overhearing too much, but knowing that some of them were nosy enough to turn their built-in coms on in order to listen in. The girl was still sniffling, but during his story, she had stopped her sobbing and looked up at him in amazement.

“But you’re so… Big! People pick on me because I’m small. And dorky. I’m 2 grades ahead of where I should be and people don’t like that.” The amazement in her voice made Mick laugh, and even after her tone became morose, he kept smiling. “Hey listen here, okay girlie? I know a lot of people. Some are smart an’ some are dumb. The kids picking on you, they ain’t going anywhere in life, but smart kids like you – some day you could rule the world. What d’ya wanna be when you’re big?” The patience in his voice was truly shocking to the team and Rip actually leant over to say “Are we sure this is the real Mick Rory?” Which earned him a slap on the arm from Kendra and a simple response of “He used to take Lisa when our Dad was drunk and I wasn’t around– he has a lot of practice with little princesses” from an almost wistful Snart.

The little girl was almost smiling now, a shy look on her face as she considered him, “I wanna be doctor. I think.” Mick whistled in exaggerated awe, making the girl giggle slightly and grin back at him. “Now that ain’t a bad choice – I know this woman, real spitfire, she’s a doctor and she helps superheroes. Now would any of the morons who were hurtin’ ya, could they keep superheroes alive like Doctor Snow does? No.” Throughout his speech, he had risen to his feet, the girl following, and he had used this opportunity to wipe her face clean with his own sleeve, which she wrinkled her nose at but made no attempt to move away.

“You smell like gasoline – are you a fireman?” Another laugh came from Mick then, this one echoed by his team mates as he replied “something like that, yeah. You should be getting home ’fore your parents start wonderin’ where you’re at.” The girl nodded, her face falling as she turned to leave, spinning back on her heel to say: “You know a Doctor Snow? That’s my name too! Maybe I’ll go by Doctor Caitlin – that’ll be less common, right?” And at that, she run off, presumably, in the direction of her home.

 

Once aboard the Waverider again, it was Ray who broke the silence; “that little girl was Caitlin… the baby we encountered last time was Caitlin – anyone else thinking…” He trailed off, not needing to complete his question, the team all nodding and thinking the same thing. Whatever was making them crash, it was linked to the life of Caitlin Snow.

The next year they crashed in was 2008, and now that they had made the link, they weren’t at all surprised to see 20 year old Caitlin Snow; what they were surprised at was that when they found her, she was fending off the advances of an over-eager drunk in an alley. She wasn’t doing too well either, it was clear that she too had been drinking and it was obviously affecting her co-ordination. “Oi. Back off unless you wanna burn.” Mick advanced forward, the first to shake off his shock, always the team member able to use his emotions to fuel his actions, rather than allow them hinder him.

The man harassing Caitlin was scrawny, not much in the way of physical strength, but he still whirled around like he was ready to fight whoever had interrupted. When he saw Mick however, he kept on turning, until he was facing the entrance to the alley, hurtling away from the woman at break-neck speed. Caitlin looked up at Mick in awe – swaying forward and placing her hands on his chest, as if feeling to check he was real. “Saving me again? Still don’t even know you’re name.” Her voice was somewhat petulant, obviously trying to be coy and teasing but failing miserably. “It’s Mick.” She hummed at this considering, eyes squinting up at him before apparently deciding it was acceptable and nodding over-exaggeratedly. “Well _Mick_ , that’s two. Two times you saved me – do I have a personal hero?” Sniggers from the rest of the team reminded Mick that they weren’t alone, and he scowled “No” was the only response he gave as the woman in front of him began swaying unsteadily on her feet. “We need to stop meeting like this” was all she said, before lurching forward, vomit painting Mick’s shoes and trousers. Great.

Getting drunk Caitlin back to her apartment was a mission all on its own, and a blushing Mick obstinately refused to comment on how he had managed to get the young girl in her bed – not that he needed to, his com-link had been on and the team had heard just how the girl had flustered Mick, apparently trying to change in front of him – “What are you doing! Put your shirt back on!” They all heard how she had refused to get into bed – “No. If I get into bed, you’ll leave and I won’t see you again ‘til the next time I get attacked.” – which was actually pretty sound reasoning for a drunk woman. And the whole team had struggled to breathe from laughter when listening to the compromise made by Mick – “I’ll lay next to ya until ya fall asleep. All right – comfortable? No – You can’t kiss me! Stop it!” Only one joke was made regarding the experience, but that one joke and the ensuing one broken jaw was enough to keep the team silent on the matter – and kept Ray completely silent on all matters until Gideon was able to reconstruct his shattered jaw bone.

 

The next stop on their trip was 2018 – two years into their future and, Rip exclaimed excitedly, “the origin of whatever is causing us to constantly crash into her life every ten years.” This time, stepping out of the Waverider, they were shocked to find themselves at STAR labs, a fact that Jax and Stein were delighted by.

Making their way to the cortex, they found themselves colliding with a harried looking Barry Allen. “Oh my God! What are you guy-“ He broke off, registering Snart in the background and his eyes filled with tears. Before anyone understood what happened, Snart had his arms full of speedster, and was frantically glancing at his team mates for help, eyes wide.

“Barry, you have super speed what is taking you so –“ Caitlin stopped, taking in the team and looking directly at Mick. “You been to ’98 lately?” At his nod, she continue. “Right. And 2008?” Another nod earned him a slap. “I can’t believe it was you! No actually, I can. I _know_ that it was you – but you _kidnapped_ me! The one guy I always wanted to see again, my _hero_! And the next time I saw you, it was when you strapped me to a _bomb_!” She was panting now, deflated by her outburst before catching sight of Barry, still clinging desperately to Snart. “Barry, stop. Make out with Snart on your own time.” At this Barry, released Snart in favour of looking scandalised back at Caitlin, who Snart was shooting a thankful look – a look that disappeared when Caitlin launched into his arms, taking Barry’s place. She was only there for a few seconds however, before pulling back, placing a kiss on his cheek.

Everyone seemed taken about by the growl that came from Mick. “Excuse me? What are you growling about?” Caitlin folded her arms, an eyebrow quirked up at him. “You said –“ Mick stopped himself, face going red and eyes darting nervously to the ground. “Oh I know what I said. When I was 20 and drunk, with you in my bed. You, who knew that one day you would kidnap me and still made me trust you.” Mick’s face fell even further, the whole team watching like it was a train wreck – something you just can’t tear your eyes away from. The whole mood was broken by a suppressed snort from Barry that had everyone look at him – mostly in horror at his apparent heartless-ness, but Caitlin just looked annoyed.

“I’m sorry, I just can’t! Guys, you _time travel_! We have actually seen you before now, and every time you guys come back, Caitlin checks to see which Mick it is and whether or not he’s just met her younger selves – Mick always says that he’s already done this. _Twice!_ Caitlin doesn’t really hate you. Sorry Cait, I just couldn’t keep watching this - the guy thinks you hate him and I swear, even since you guys started dating, I’ve never seen Heatwave look so _emotional_. It’s weird.” It really was a wonder nobody had noticed Barry was the Flash, with how quickly he spoke, the Team only just managing to catch what he was saying and barely registering what this even meant for them.

“Wait – dating?” Mick’s voice had become hopeful, a smug smirk plastered across his face. Caitlin was still fixed with a stony expression though and her posture, clearly defensive. “Don’t think this just falls into place. You still have to make things up to 2016 me; given the betrayal I’ve just been through, don’t think it will be easy. I really could have used a trip away from that time.” Her eyes were glinting now, full of mischief and she stepped forward to place a barely-there peck on Mick’s lips. “See you two years ago.”

Mick grinned, a new-found determination to complete their mission. “Let’s find what’s affecting us and get outta here. We got an appointment to keep in 2016.”

 

 **Outtake:** “Ah, Miss Snow, a pleasure.” Rip approached Caitlin, hand outstretched to shake her own when he noticed the rope tying her to the seat. “What the – Oh bloody hell! I told you to _recruit_ her, not _kidnap_ her. Honestly, if I wanted her kidnapped, I would have sent our resident criminals!” Sara refused to look abashed as she was lectured by Rip. Rolling her eyes, she strolled forward to release Caitlin’s bonds, the doctor looking confusedly between all of the team members. “What the _hell_ is going on here?”

 

**Author's Note:**

> This is my least favourite piece of my writing. Ever. The only thing I like is my outtake. But considering I wrote, deleted and re-wrote this story 5 times, using a slightly different idea every time, it was this or nothing.


End file.
